Hey 
So I’m a rising junior and I was coming up with a list of colleges which I might want to apply to. First of all, I was born and brought up in California before moving to a foreign country from 5th grade to 9th grade. I then moved back to California for sophomore year before moving to Seattle for junior year. I’m now moving back to California for senior year (my parent’s jobs require me to move around a lot). My question is, am I considered instate for the UC’s or am I instate for Washington universities such as UW? I’m new to the forums so sorry if this is in the wrong place.
Thanks
You need to look up the residency laws in each state. Use google for this. Usually though schools want 1-2 years of uninterrupted residency in a state before the student starts school. This means that if you start school in CA in Fall 2016, by Fall 2017, when you start college, you will be a CA resident, if and only if the rules are 12 months.
The CUNY system in NY has a slightly different rule. You need to have graduated from a NYC high school to qualify. There may be a clause like that for CA high school graduates too.
Just google for the info or ask your high school guidance counselor
If you live in CA next year I’d think you will be considered a CA resident, but check the residency requirements to be certain.
You must reside in CA for 366 days prior to starting college classes to be considered a resident.
Thank you So does that mean in the case I attend a UC I would be paying OOS tuition for one year and then in state for the rest?
Possibly, but I would call and ask. Your case is unusual.
My understanding is that it is almost impossible to establish UC residency while you are in school. If you start OOS, you are stuck.
Oh, if you do contact UC, do it IN WRITING. Phone call information is not binding on the person(s) who may ultimately rule on your eligibility. You want a paper trail.
Okay, I will write UC a letter, thank you! The reason why I thought that I may only have to pay one year of OOS tuition was because at the school I attended in a foreign country there was a girl who lived in California for a while and decided to attend UCB. Her entire family moved back to California and after one year of OOS tuition she was considered in state. Just in case you were wondering
There are so many exceptions that you cannot take guidance from one person’s experience. Follow the link that gumbymom posted above and read the entire “UC Residence Policy and Guidelines” file from the link over on the left hand side.
I will give you a counter example. D was born in California. D graduated from a California high school. There is one policy that says she was a resident for tuition purposes forever and ever. She spent one post-college year living and working in another state while she applied to grad school. Oops. No longer a California resident according to an interpretation of another guideline. Now, we could give a whatever about that, since she’s on a full fellowship and it’s just a matter of the university moving money from one pot to another (and maybe that’s the underlying reason), but I would never trust UC to be reasonable in these decisions. Just warning you not to assume anything. Best, ATS